Synopsis

After Mr. Krabs sees a child throwing a coin down a well, much to his horror, he learns about wishing wells and creates the Eugene Krabs Memorial Wishing Well in the hope of making money from it. SpongeBob and Squidward are tasked with digging the well, and SpongeBob does all the work, singing a song about the well's magic while doing so, as to Squidward who is continuously complaining about the wishing well and its location. After the well's completion, SpongeBob obtains a "promotion" in which he has to stay in the bottom of the well all day and night to collect coins that are tossed in.

After Sandy, Plankton and Mrs. Puff throw coins into the well and make their wishes, Patrick arrives and throws his soda cup into the well, thinking it was a trash can. SpongeBob tries to explain to him that it is a wishing well, and Patrick mistakes the voice as coming from the "trash can." He wishes that SpongeBob was here to see the magic trash can with him, and when he tries to throw his coin into the well, he falls inside and meets SpongeBob at the bottom. That night, Mr. Krabs arrives to collect the money, and SpongeBob asks him if any of the wishes have come true yet. Mr. Krabs falsely says that if they "believe hard enough" and "dig deep enough," the wishes will come true.

The two buddies take this literally and begin to dig the well deeper. Eventually, SpongeBob finds a glowing crack on the ground and claims that he has "found the magic." Squidward later comes to the well to tell them how good it feels that they are not able to bother him. SpongeBob tells him that they found the magic, and Squidward, laughing at them, explains that there is no magic and that wishing wells are nothing more than a scam. SpongeBob wishes that he could see the magic for himself, and Squidward falls into the well. SpongeBob and Patrick's antics continue to torment him as he desperately tries to escape. The next day, Mr. Krabs arrives to check on the well as Squidward finally climbs out, with SpongeBob and Patrick following.

Squidward wishes to get as far away from the well as possible, and is subsequently hit by and stuck to the front of a bus going to "far away." Mr. Krabs asks SpongeBob how much money they made, and SpongeBob explains that they made no money, but found the magic. Mr. Krabs then tries to explain to him that there is no such thing as magic, but then sees that the wishes of Sandy, Mrs. Puff, and Plankton have all come true. SpongeBob asks if the sights were proof enough but the skeptical Mr. Krabs still does not believe in magic, and tries to prove that magic does not exist by wishing to be "steamed and served with a side of melted butter." SpongeBob becomes worried for his boss before Mr. Krabs gloats and asks where magic is before he suddenly disappears.

Mr. Krabs' wish has been granted and Mr. Krabs is turned into a real sea crab on a plate. He wonders where he is while the hand of a waiter places a cup of melted butter on the plate with him, and Mr. Krabs says, "What's going on here?" in a worried tone. Then a live-action human puts on a bib that reads "THE END" and prepares to eat Mr. Krabs in his meal as Mr. Krabs finally realizes that magic is real and says, "Uh oh! I do believe in magic! I do believe in magic! I do believe in magic! Oh, no!"

Production

Animation in progress errorThe original airing of this episode had its sister, "All That Glitters," at the beginning and it ended with SpongeBob at the therapist's office before it cut to him saying, "You can't rush perfection." The rest of episode plays as normally. To prevent duplication in reruns, it was replaced with the new opening credits and the first part of the episode.

Cultural references

When SpongeBob says "You shouldn't fight in here. This is a magical place!" to Patrick and Squidward, it's a reference to the quote "Gentlemen, you can't fight here! This is the War Office!" from the 1964 film Dr. Strangelove.

Errors

Right before SpongeBob performs "Down The Well," when walking towards Squidward, SpongeBob has no legs beneath his body.

Notice the mistake.

SpongeBob puts in a sign that reads "Open" beside the well, but two scenes later, it disappears.

Squidward points out that all he could smell is the dumpster behind the Krusty Krab. After a couple scenes, the dumpster is gone.

Patrick's drink, which he threw away in the well, disappears after he falls in.

When Patrick throws the coin, the well is big enough for him to fall in, but when he reaches the bottom, it is big enough for him, SpongeBob, and Squidward.

Patrick is just as big, if not bigger than Mr. Krabs, yet he is able to fit inside the well, but Mr. Krabs can't.

When Mr. Krabs collects the money, SpongeBob loads only two coins into the bucket when there were four to collect. Also, SpongeBob claims he got two pennies from Mrs. Puff, while she threw only one coin down the well. He also did not put the "slightly used pair of dentures" that Patrick was wearing into the bucket.

When SpongeBob is singing during an attempt to find magic in the well, the well is made to seem like it is a digging mine, when it truly isn't. Also, the mine disappears after the song ends.

Also, during the bulldozer scene, he is first inside the bulldozer. In the next scene, he is standing on the bulldozer's dig claw, while the arm is lifting on its own.

Squidward's shirt is missing in two scenes: when he first sees SpongeBob and Patrick in the well and when Patrick is sitting on him.

Notice Squidward's body.

Squidward gets his wish to be far away even though he didn't throw a penny into the well.

In the final scene, a crunch sound can be heard signifying Mr. Krabs was eaten, but the human hadn't yet taken his fork or put the crab into his mouth.